There Is A Light In Your Eyes
by quteash
Summary: Maria is assigned to work in a new storyline with Legacy. At first, it's a dream come true because she's getting the push she's been waiting for, but that rapidly changes as strong feelings and threats from the Nexus come into play. Randy/Maria (In third-person after chapter 11)
1. Dangerous or not?

There is a light in your eyes

_Hello everyone about to read this. :) This is my first ever story on fanfiction and it's gonna be a Randy&Maria story._ _I hope you enjoy it, & please review._

**Chapter One - Dangerous or not?  
**

It was 5:30 a.m. I shouldn't be awake right now, but I am, thanks to Stephanie who called me last night and told me to meet her at the arena early this morning. I had agreed before she told me what time. I mean, early morning is around seven. But five thirty? That's a bit _too _early. I sighed as I parked the car. There were other cars in the parking lot, but not many. I assumed they belonged to backstage workers like camera men and what not. I got out of my car in a pair of black skinny jeans, a white tank top, and black heels. I got a dark blue, plain hoodie out of my purse and threw it on, after all, it was a cold morning as snowflakes slowly fell, placing a thin, white layer of snow on the ground. I made my way towards the entrance, my footsteps echoed around the almost empty parking lot.

Once I got to the entrance, I pulled the door, and just my luck, the door wouldn't open. I pulled at it for about thirty seconds, then gave up due to no luck of the door being opened. I sighed. This is perfect. _Just perfect. _Urgh. I tried another useless attempt at opening the door, then kicked it out of pure frustration.

"Y'know, hitting it won't make it open." I turned around to see who saw my little tantrum. It was none other than the Cody Rhodes.

"Oh," I laugh nervously, "I know, but Stephanie called me and I'm running late-"

He chuckled, "It's fine Maria, look, all you have to do is push it in till you hear a click, then pull it and it opens." he said while doing just that. "..and ta-da, it's open." he smiled.

I looked at the door, then at him. I smiled, "Thanks Cody, you're a life saver."

"You're welcome..Shouldn't you be going to meet Stephanie now?" he questioned.

I gasped, remembering why I was here in the first place. "Oh yeah, I forgot! I'll see you later Cody." I said while rushing down the hall.

"I'll be in the ring doing some training." he yelled to me, then went off to train.

"Really, it's fine Maria." Stephanie said with a smile. I had been apologizing for my tardiness ever since I had entered, five minutes ago.

"Okay..So, why did you wanna meet me here?" I asked politely.

"Right. So, I was thinking, now that Santino's a heel, we want a storyline with some other heel stars with him. The best way to do that, and benefit you as well, is to have you fall for another superstar."

I slowly nod, "Okay..But who's the other superstar?" I ask.

"Carlito has a match against Ted DiBiase tonight. You and Santino will be cheering ringside for Carlito while Randy and Cody will be there cheering for Ted. So halfway during the match, Santino will interfere but runs out of the ring when Cody comes into the ring and chases him out. Then he'll use you as a shield and push you into Cody to buy some time while he himself makes a run for it. You'll act surprised and upset. Then, Carlito will pick up the win this week with all the chaos. If this gets a good response from the audience, we'll continue with this storyline..Any questions?" she asked.

"No, this sounds pretty simple..But which member of Legacy will I be paired up with?" I ask her again, cause she didn't really answer it the first time.

"We aren't sure yet..We'll let time tell that one. See who the crowd likes you with better, okay?" She smiles.

"Okay, thanks," I nod and offer her a smile before leaving.

I was about to go back to the hotel for a nap, when I decided to go see someone I'd be working with soon enough.

I walked around backstage till I found the curtains which lead to the ring. I started a slow walk down the ramp looking intensely at the two men in the ring, battling it out. They both took a break and laughed. One of them was the same person I ran into earlier. The other was a tall, tan, muscular man. He stood on the far left of the ring, leaning on the ropes while taking a sip of water, his back was to me.

"Err..Cody?" I ask, cautiously. I wasn't sure if now's the time to be saying a quick hello..

He turned to look at me, "Maria..Hey," he said, sounding surprised at first, then brushing that feeling off with a smile.

I noticed as the older of the two turned his head to look at me.

"Hey Cody..Hey Randy," I smiled politely. Cody and I weren't good friends but we talked here and there. But Randy and I barely ever talked. We greeted each other every time we ran into one another, but that was about it..

He took another sip of water before I had said hi, so he just nodded in my direction.

"So..what's up?" Cody asked.

"Oh, nothing..Just thought I'd come see you." I said honestly.

"Oh okay, so what do you think about tonight?" he asked.

"..What do you mean?" I asked, sounding rather confused-which I was. He surely couldn't be talking about what Stephanie told me. I mean, she _just _now told me, how could he know?

"The ringside segment tonight," he clarified. Then, seeing as to my puzzled expression, he added, "She told us before you…Last night to be precise."

"Oh," I laugh, "It sounds fun." Then I ask, "What about you? You think you can handle me crashing into you without falling?"

"Don't worry about that. You're not strong enough to make me fall," he smirked.

I laugh, then say, "Okay, we'll see..Well I better get going, before Ashley has a panic attack."

"Okay, see you tonight" he says.

"Yeah." I smile. "Well, bye you guys. See you later," I say.

"Bye" they both say in unison.

"Where the hell have you been?" the dirty blonde diva inquired.

"Well hello to you too," I say as I enter my hotel room that I was sharing with my best friend.

"Do you know what time it is? You were supposed to be back an hour ago." She said, ignoring my comment completely.

"You could have called, if you were so worried." I rolled my eyes playfully, she was always so protective of me.

"Firstly, I wasn't worried. Secondly, I did, but you never answer the damn thing," she hissed.

"Oh," I continue, "well, I'm sorry. I'll call you next time and tell you beforehand if I'm going to be late, okay?" I smile as I approach her and hug her.

"Fine, I'll let this time slide by," she smiled. Then, she wrapped her arms around me. "What took you so long, anyway?"

"I was talking to Cody, he's in the new storyline I'm getting..Actually, all of Legacy is."

"Oh wow, you better be careful. I hear Randy's a psycho. He has a huge temper, is controlling-"

"What happened to, 'Rumors are overrated. Don't ever believe in them,' Ashley?" I ask, quoting what she says quite often.

"I was _warning_ you based on what I've seen and heard."

"Mhm, alright. Well, I hear this lovely bed calling my name," I smile.

"Oh yeah, you should get your rest before tonight."

"Mhm." I mumble as I fall onto my bed and close my eyes.

I was looking forward to tonight. This could be the big push I've been waiting for.

_"...You better be careful." _

Ashley's words rang around in my head. Was working with Randy Orton _really _that dangerous? I sighed, only time will tell what this storyline holds in store for me.

That was the first chapter of this series, and like most, it's pretty boring. It'll get better as we go along, though. :) _Please _review if you read it, just so I know that people are reading this. Oh, and leave your thoughts too. Thanks. :)


	2. It's Fancy Meeting You Here

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_ Thank you to Hollywood Scarlet, wAcKiEjAcKiE826, & tvrox12 for reviewing the last chapter. :)  
_

**Chapter Two - It's Fancy Meeting You Here  
**

* * *

I hurried out of my car into the enormous building. I was running late thanks to Ashley, who forgot to wake me up to get ready, which meant I looked through my suitcase and put on whatever I saw first. In this case, that happened to be a red-and-white plaid shirt over a white tank top, a pair of faded, skinny blue jeans, and black boots. To top it off, my hair was in a messy ponytail, and I was wearing no make-up. I sighed, this was not going well.

I practically ran into the Divas locker-room. Then I placed my bag on a bench and began to throw together my outfit. A half an hour later I looked at myself in the mirror and smiled in satisfaction. I was wearing a short, black, strapless dress, and a pair of black heels.

Then, after checking my outfit one last time before heading out, I went over to hair & make-up and sat on the empty stool.

* * *

_ "I spit in the face of people who don't want to be cool…" _ Carlito's theme blasted the arena as we started to walk down the ramp. I waved at the audience members we were passing. I smiled as Santino-being the gentleman he is-held my hand and led me into the ring.

_"It's a new day…",_started playing through the speakers.

Then three men slowly walked out and studied the place.

Ted and Cody each had a cocky grin on their face, while Randy just glared at the audience, then turned his head to look directly in the ring.

The three made their way to the ring as Santino and I stepped out and stood ringside.

"C'mon Carlito!" I yelled as he received violent punches from Ted DiBiase Jr. The match started out with Carlito dominating, but soon switched as Ted gained total control.

This is it.

Ted went to pin Carlito.

_"I think he's got this match, J.R. One, two-and oh, what's this?" _ King said.

_"Santino Marella has just gotten involved and-wait, here comes Cody Rhodes."_

I watched as Santino made a panicked face and rolled out of the ring, Cody being right behind him.

Santino ran past me, then turned and pushed me into Cody before running backstage.

Cody held his arms firmly around my waist making sure I wouldn't fall, then let go and gave me a glare-something he had to do to stay in character.

I stood there acting shocked as to what had just taken place, and then turned my attention to the ring where Carlito stood victorious.

* * *

"Well Maria, I am pleased the way this has started and we're going to continue it." Stephanie had called me into her office before I left the arena to tell me more about the storyline and where it's headed.

"Oh that's great," I smiled.

"Yeah, and next week it's going to be an inter-gender tag team match."

"..Inter-gender?"

"Yes, Santino, Carlito, and yourself against the Legacy." Stephanie clarified.

"But isn't that-"

"Unfair? Yes. But that's the point we're trying to make, since Santino cost Ted the match this week, next week Legacy gets their chance."

"So..Do I have to wrestle anyone?" I asked, not sure if I wanted to hear her answer to that.

"This is what's going to take place, halfway through the match, it'll be Cody taking on Santino, while Ted goes and takes Carlito down ringside. Then Cody tags Randy in, and Santino will act scared and run out of the ring, yet again."

I let out a small laugh, "That sounds cool..So do I have to wrestle?"

"I can't really say, it depends if you're tagged in, but don't worry, the guys will be sure to not be too hard on you," she smiled.

"Oh okay, thanks Stephanie," and those were my parting words.

* * *

"You looked so scared when Santino pushed you. It was hilarious." Ashley laughed.

"Really? I was going more for a shocked look."

"Ooh, you know what's shocking?" She asks.

"Hmm, the fact that Adam isn't here to bug you?" I say with a slight smirk.

"Oh ha, ha," she said, not sounding pleased, "I ran into him backstage today."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, he was being-"

"A pain?" I smirked.

"Exactly..So can we not talk about him?" She pleaded.

"Yeah..So, what do you wanna do now?" I asked, getting bored of sitting in the hotel room watch television.

"Ooh, let's go down to the hotel bar."

"Yeah, I heard everyone was going be there tonight."

* * *

About an hour later, Ashley and I were ready to go down to the hotel bar. She wore black jeans, a white wife-beater, and converse. She always dressed casually to these places. I dressed a bit fancier though, I was wearing a short, gray dress, and black heels. I also had on some bracelets and a necklace for accessories.

We stepped out of the elevator and headed over to the bar. As we entered, we saw it was reserved for WWE workers only, which meant I didn't have to deal with drunken fans making a move on me. Thank God for that.

Almost the entire roster was here. A lot of people were dancing or were sitting by the tables and talking. What _we _usually do is have some soda-we usually lay off the alcohol because neither one of us enjoys waking up to a hangover when we have other things to do that day-dance, and then go back to our hotel room.

"A Coke with a lemon wedge, please," Ashley was telling the bartender her order.

"& a raspberry iced tea for me." I said.

Once we got our beverages, I turned to face the dance floor. I saw all the happy couples dancing, having a good time.

I sighed, "I need a man."

"Mhm, I do too, but for now, you'll just have to do," she winked.

Before I could say anything else, Adam Copeland-or Edge-approached us and took a seat next to Ashley.

The story between Adam and Ashley is kind of complicated. So to put it in the simplest way I can, here's how it goes..When she started out in the WWE, Adam was always picking on her, not in a funny way, though, it was hurtful. Then a few months passed, and then Adam started being all flirty towards her-which shocked _me _more than it did her. You see, she thinks the only thing he wants is to get her into bed, so she's not surprise by one of his so called 'low-life, childish games'. But I don't know, I think he genuinely likes her. To be honest, she probably feels the same way but is too afraid to admit it. One thing's for sure, every time they run into each other, it's a sight to see.

"What are you doing here?" Ashley asked bitterly, the same tone she had anytime she talked to him.

"Hey Adam," I smiled, Adam and I were good friends from the start, he was one of my closest friends, so I always spoke to him nicely.

"Hey Maria," he smiled, ignoring Ashley's question.

"Since _she _will talk to you, why don't you sit by _her?" _questioned Ashley.

He placed his arm around her as he began to speak, "Oh come on, I know you're gonna be _gushing _about me sitting next to you once you get back into your hotel room..So might as well enjoy the moment."

"Ugh, get over yourself already!" She rolled her eyes, as she plucked his hand off of her shoulder.

Adam got up and stood in front of her, as she sipped her soda. She looked up slowly and looked annoyed.

"Yes?" She questioned.

"Let's dance."

She scoffed, "In your dreams, Edge."

A smirk made its way onto his face, "I wasn't asking."

Before Ashley could answer, he grabbed her wrist and led her to the dance floor, and before you know it they were lost in the crowd.

_"No! Maria, help! Stop it, I don't wanna dance-especially not with you. No! Maria!"_

Even though I couldn't see them, I _knew _that that was Ashley's voice calling for help. I wasn't going to help her though, Adam was a nice guy and she should give him a chance.

_"Ugh…Fine!"_

I smiled, it sounds like they came to a compromise.

"He won't give up, will he?" a male voice coming from my left asked.

I turned to look at the person and smiled, "Nah, he's a fighter."

He chuckled, "He really does like her, though."

"Oh I know, he wouldn't chase after her this much if he didn't."

"Yeah..So, why are you here all alone?"

"I'm not-or I _wasn't _till Adam stole my date." I smirked.

He faked a gasp, "Maria! Oh my, I didn't know you were like that."

I giggled, "The award for the best male drama queen goes to...Cody Rhodes!" I handed him my glass of the raspberry iced tea as his trophy.

"Thank you so much! I have so many people to thank for this, I-"

"Maria, let's go." I turned my head to see Ashley walking towards me.

"Oh, err," I turn to look at Cody.

"Its fine," he smiles, "You go, I need to see if Adam's okay, anyway." He chuckled.

"What?" I turn my head to see Adam kneeling down on the ground, his face filled with pain. "Oh my God..What happ-"

Ashley finally reached me. Then got a hold of my wrist, dragged me out of the bar and into the elevator.

* * *

"Ashley, what happened to Adam?" I asked, worried for my friend.

"He said he would let me go after one dance, but after the dance, he held onto me. So I got out of his grip, kicked him where it hurts most, and left." She smiled proudly.

"But-"

"No, I don't want to hear you take his side, yet again," the elevator doors opened, "and you didn't even help me when I was calling for you."

"Yeah, but-"

"No, I don't even want to know." With that said, she walked into our room and closed the door.

I tried to open the door, but it was already locked.

"Ashley, open the door, I'm still out here."

"_You are?_ I don't see you, but I _do _hear you calling for help. Hmm, what shall I do? Oh I know, sit back and do _nothing!" _She exclaimed.

"Ash, come on. I'm sorry!"

"Not good enough."

Knowing that _talking _wouldn't make her open this door, I started banging my fists on the door and occasionally kicking it.

"..Maria?" a deep voice from behind me asked.

I stopped what I was doing and slowly turned around.

I had a feeling that this was a repeat of the incident that took place earlier this morning-except the intruder was a different person this time.

"Hey…Randy," I smiled sheepishly.

* * *

I made this chapter a little bit longer because I don't know if I'll be able to update it tomorrow, but if not tomorrow, then probably some time over the weekend. :) Thanks for reading and please review. :)


	3. He Did What?

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thank you to__ wAcKiEjAcKiE826__ and Animal-Viper-Cena Fan for reviewing. :)_

** Chapter Three - He did what?**

* * *

"Are you locked out?" He questioned. Oh God, I felt so embarrassed.

"I guess you could put it that way."

"You should go get another room key from the front desk," he advised.

"Oh, it's fine...Ashley's-"

"Maria, I've decided to forgive-", Ashley stopped talking as she slowly looked up at the Legend Killer standing out in the hallway, just a few mere feet away from me.

"Oh…" That's all she managed to say after noticing the awkwardness.

His gaze was on Ashley, then, lingered onto me, "Bye." That's all he said before heading towards the elevators.

Once I was sure he had left, I let out a sigh of relief.

"Well _that _wasn't creepy at all." Ashley's sarcastic comment was accompanied with a roll of the eyes.

I nodded, that _was _creepy. He was so..._mysterious._

_

* * *

_

"Wow, we're finally on time this week," Ashley said. We were usually fashionably late, but this Monday night, we were surprisingly on time-a few minutes early, actually. Honestly, it was refreshing.

"I know, _and _we're early." I smiled proudly.

"Shocking, is it not?" Ashley grinned.

I laughed. Nothing could ruin my good mood today. I had a huge match tonight for which I was _extremely _excited _and _nervous for.

Ashley must have noticed my now anxious expression, "Maria, don't worry about the match. You're going to be fine."

"I know, it just that...I don't know!" I exclaimed.

"Maria, relax. Breathe, come on, deep breaths, like this," while Ashley was busy demonstrating how to take a deep breath, I rolled my eyes and sat down on a nearby crate, putting my face in my hands.

I felt her sit right next to me. She sighed, "Maria, what's wrong? You were excited about the match till just five minutes ago."

I looked up at her, then, smiled seeing her worried face.

"I guess I was just worried. But now I'm excited…Again." I grinned.

She looked at me in disbelief, "You're lucky that I love you."

"Is that a threat or compliment..?" I asked, smirking.

"Oh shut up." She laughed.

* * *

Carlito, Santino, and I were waiting in the ring for our opponents.

_"I hear voices in my head…" _Randy's theme blasted through the arena, the three men slowly walked down the ramp, all of them having smirks on their faces as they looked upon us. Of course they had something to smile about; they had an unfair advantage in this match. But me on the other hand, I looked like a mess, I had a panic attack a few minutes before the match because...Well, the match was coming up in a few minutes.

The bell rang, this match had officially begun.

Ted and Carlito started the match, Ted was dominating so far. Then Carlito threw Ted out of the ring-which looked extremely painful-and Ted just laid there. Carlito took this time to tag Santino into the match. Santino ran out of the ring and attacked a still-recovering Ted. But then Ted started to deliver punches of his own to the Italian superstar I was said to be so-in-love with.

Santino was rolled into the ring by Ted, who then went and tagged in Cody Rhodes. Cody came in full of energy and-as expected-took control of the match.

A few more minutes into the match, and Ted comes running over, tackling Carlito ringside and delivering unforgiving punches. As I turn my attention back to the ring, Cody walked over to his corner of the ring and tagged-the one and only-Randy Orton into the match. Santino stood up but started backing away and begging Randy not to do anything to him, as the Viper slowly stepped closer to him.

Then Santino starts running to our corner, getting ready to make a quick getaway. But before he rolls out of the ring, he tags me into this match.

I stood there dumbfounded by what just happened.

_**Santino tagged me into the match. Me.**_

As I started to process what was going on, I realized my face started to go pale and I was breathing unevenly.

_Calm down_. I need to calm down.

"Maria, you have to get in the ring." The referee instructed me.

I slowly got inside the ring, but stayed planted to my corner.

Randy started walking towards me, slower than before.

I knew I had to get into character. I shook my head and my eyes started welling up with tears-which were forced-and I stumbled backwards until I was cornered by Randy.

I bit my bottom lip and looked to the side as he brought his face to my level and tried looking me in the eyes.

The next thing I know, he grabs my wrist and jerks me forward, making me jump forward. I was now in the center of the ring. I looked at him nervously-even though I wasn't really nervous. Randy would make sure to be easy on me, Stephanie had told me so last week.

Randy started to turn around and made it look as if he was heading to his corner. So I had to act like I believed he was letting me go, and I turned around, ready to leave the ring.

That's when he grabbed my shoulder and spun me around to face him, and before I could do anything, I was hit with an RKO.

_One,_

_two,_

_three._

The match was over. Randy pinned me.

I lay there in the ring-acting as if I was out cold, when I was fine-as Randy, Cody, and Ted walked up the ramp. Randy was so quick to deliver the RKO that I didn't even feel anything.

I was expecting Carlito to come into the ring and help me or something, but instead he was making his way onto the ramp and then backstage.

I started to move from my position in the ring when the audience started cheering. I looked up to see none other than my best friend running down the ramp and into the ring.

She was kneeling right next to me and hugged me lightly. Then she began asking if I was okay, and all that. Ashley was also part of the storyline with Santino. She was the one who kept telling me that he wasn't good for me and all that.

I stood up and stepped out of the ring, Ashley had her arm around my back, and mine was around her waist. I used my other hand to hold my neck, acting as if I was still in pain.

* * *

Once we were backstage I was surprised to find Santino and Carlito waiting for me.

"Hey, are you alright?" Carlito questioned.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I smiled.

"Oh and I'm sorry for tagging you in, I was in the moment and thought it would be good for the storyline, you know?"

"Yeah, I know, and it's fine. I think it helped make you a heel and foreshadow our break-up."

"I think so too," I turned around to see Stephanie approaching us, a smile on her face.

We all greeted her, then she turned to me, "Maria, before you leave, come meet me in my office, okay?"

"Okay," I nodded.

* * *

"I'm gonna go to the hotel Maria, or do you want me to wait?" Ashley asked as we left the locker room.

"Nah, you can go, I'll ride with someone else."

"Are you sure? I can wait if you want."

"No, it's fine."

"What if you can't find a ride?" She questioned.

"I'll get a cab. Don't worry, I'll be fine, Ashley."

"Alright. Well, see you soon. Bye," she waved as she headed out.

"Bye." I replied, then, turned to go meet Stephanie.

I wonder what she has to say now.

* * *

_This was kind of a boring chapter, so I'm sorry, but the next chapter will be better. :) Please review. It means a lot to me. :) _


	4. The Tingling Feeling

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thanks to wAcKiEjAcKiE826, xRustyDoll, tvrox12, and Animal-Viper-Cena Fan for reviewing the last chapter. :)_

**Chapter Four - The Tingling Feeling**

* * *

"Stephanie?" I asked as I entered her office.

"Yes?" She looked up, "Oh, Maria, come in," she smiled.

I walked in and noticed another person sitting in the chair next to the one I'd be in.

"So…You wanted to talk to me." I took the seat next to him, and looked at Stephanie. I noticed him turning to look at me.

"Yes. Maria, I loved the match today, it gave a great push for the new storyline with you and Legacy. I got to thinking; let's throw Ashley into the storyline."

"Oh that would be great, but how?"

"It's simple, next week we'll show a backstage segment where you and Ashley are talking to Santino and Carlito, you'll be arguing with Santino, and you end up slapping him. Then, he'll go and ask for a match-"

"Against me?" I interrupt.

"Yes, but it'll end up being a tag team match; Santino and Carlito versus you and Ashley." She looked over at the person sitting next to me, "Then, Legacy-," her phone started ringing and she answered it.  
"Hello...Oh hi, how are you?" She placed her hand on the phone and whispered, "I have to take this. We'll talk later."

We nodded and stepped out of her office and made our way down the empty hall.

"So...How are you feeling after that RKO?" He asked.

I smiled, "I'm good. Thanks for going easy on me, Randy."

"Well I wasn't going to fight you, Maria." He chuckled.

I let out a soft giggle, "Yeah…"

"So, you going back to your hotel?"

"Yeah, I have to get a cab now." I laugh.

"I can give you a ride." He offers.

"Oh no, that's fine. I don't want to bother you."

"You won't bother me. What hotel?"

"Four Seasons."

"That's the one I'm in. Come on."

* * *

We got into the car and he started driving.  
He was driving insanely fast-not that it bothered me, I mean, I drive like that too.

The drive was pretty quiet so far.

He chuckles, "I'm surprised you aren't screaming."

"What?" I ask.

"Whenever I'm driving with Cody and Ted they always yell and complain about my driving."

"Oh no, I like your driving. It's pretty much how I drive."

"Huh." That's all he says.

"What?"

"Nothing," he looks over at me with his million dollar smirk.

I smile and feel my cheeks turning a light shade of pink.

The rest of the drive was pretty much silent and then we arrived at the hotel.

"Thanks again for the ride, Randy,"

"No problem," he flashed his smirk again.

I smiled, "Okay…Well, I'll see you around."

"Yeah."

"Yeah...I better get going. Thanks again. Bye."

"Bye."

* * *

"So let me get this straight, you were in the same car as Randy Orton and you _didn't _find him creepy?" Ashley asked, apparently in shock.

I laugh, "I told you, he was nice and we had a nice conversation."

"You probably haven't recovered from the car ride."

I rolled my eyes, "He wasn't that bad Ashley."

"Yeah, sure," she rolled her eyes.

"Why do you hate him so much because of stupid rumors that you've heard?"

"It's not because of that, I've seen him do twisted things."

"Like?" I question.

"Like…Giving you an RKO"

"Okay, first off, it didn't hurt, he made sure not to hurt me. Secondly, he asked me if I was okay."

"It doesn't matter. He's still a psycho."

"If you get to know him, you won't think that."

"Yeah and _when _will I get to know him? That's right, nev-"

I gasped, "You're in the storyline with me!"

I watched as her eyes widened, "What?"

"Yeah, Stephanie told me that. I just forgot to tell you-"

There was a knock on the door, which Ashley went to answer.

"Because you were blabbing on and on about how Randy was so nice." She finished my sentence for me.

"Shut up."

She opened the door, "Speak of the devil," she muttered to softly for anyone to hear.

"Is Maria here?" A deep voice asked.

"Yeah, hold on." Ashley turned to me and yelled, "It's for you."

"Who is it?" I asked, I couldn't tell because she was blocking my view.

"When you come here, you'll see."

I got up and went to the door only to find Randy in the hallway.

"Oh..Hi," I smiled.

"Hey." He said, then gave me the once-over and smirked.

I was wearing short, black shorts, a shirt, and socks. Why was he smirking?

"What?"

He shook his head, then, pulled out a black iPod, "You left this in my car."

"Oh, thanks." I said, reaching for the device in his hands.

"Don't mention it." He still had the same smirk.

"Right…"

"Okay, I'm gonna go. Bye."

"Bye." I said as he started to walk down the hallway, then he stopped and turned around.

"Oh, and nice shirt, it suits you." He winks at me, then turns around and starts walking.

I looked down at the shirt I was wearing and realized it was _his_ official WWE shirt. So that's why he was smirking. I smiled to myself, then, walked into the room.

"What did he want?" Ashley asked as she flipped through the T.V. channels.

"I left my iPod in his car and he was returning it."

"So why are you smiling like an idiot?"

"He gave me a compliment."

"And what was that?" She asked, not really interested.

"Well, he was smirking at me and I didn't know why. Then, before he left, he said 'Nice shirt, it suits you.'"

"And?" She asked.

"Look at my shirt."

She turned her head and looked at me, "Oh, so you think he was giving you a compliment when he was only self-praising himself," she rolled her eyes.

"No, he said it suits me so that means I look good in it," I smile.

"Okay, so why is it such a big such a big deal?"

"It's…not."

"Firstly, if it wasn't, you wouldn't have been smiling like that. Secondly, you paused before answering."

"I was smiling because I was glad I got my iPod back, and I paused because I was looking for the right word."

"Oh please, you didn't even know your iPod was missing. And it doesn't take that long to think of 'it's not.'"

I didn't know what to say to that. She was right, why _was _it a big deal that Randy gave me a compliment?

"It's fine. Once you figure it out, I'll be the first to know." Her words cut through my thoughts.

"What?" I asked, confused.

"You'll find out soon enough." She laughed.

_"…Nice shirt, it suits you." _I couldn't help but smile as his words, his smirk, when he winked at me flooded my head.

I closed my eyes and hoped that this feeling would end soon-at least I _thought _I did.

* * *

_Thanks for reading, and as always, please review. :) _


	5. Am I Dreaming?

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thank you to barnsley gal 09, wAcKiEjAcKiE826, Hollywood Scarlet, Sophiax94x, xRustyDoll, and pajama pants__5 for reviewing the last chapter_. :)

**Chapter Five - Am I Dreaming?**

* * *

The last few days have been kind of rough. All I've been thinking about is how I felt about Randy last Monday. I mean, I woke up the next day and that feeling was gone, so I should have let it go, but what bothered me was the fact that I felt that way _at all_. It was probably a mood swing or something, though. I shrugged this topic off, I had a match tonight and I wanted to clear my mind and concentrate on that.

_

* * *

"Well I think this is an unjust match up. I mean, Maria has a right to be angry with Santino. He left her to fend for herself against the Viper, Randy Orton. Can you believe that, J.R.?"_

_"What I cannot believe is that Santino asked for this tag match against Maria and Ashley."_

_"Well you know what they say, never trust an Italian man."_

_"The bell has rung. This is now an official match which was requested by Santino. Starting things off in the ring are Santino Marella and Ashley." _

I watched as Ashley and Santino circled each other. Then she stepped forward as he acted like he was intimidated and tagged in Carlito. Carlito came charging towards Ashley as she raised her leg, crashing it against his face.

Carlito kneeled down and rubbed his jaw while Ashley tagged me in.

I entered the ring as Carlito rose from his kneeling position, he turned to Santino who was pleading to get tagged in. Carlito looked at me, then at Santino. Carlito then came charging at me and pushed me down. Then, he went to Santino and tagged him in.

Santino grinned as he entered the ring-being as his usual, stuck up character. He pulled my hair, making me stand up and then looked at the crowd-the cocky smirk never leaving his face. Then, he forcefully pushed me down-which, by the way, _did _hurt.

He pulled me up again and stood me up by the turnbuckle, then, he came crashing towards me, crushing me in between him and the turnbuckle. I listened as the boos and jeers came pouring in from the audience. As he moved away, I fell to my knees, holding onto my aching abdomen all the while.

Then, the crowd started cheering louder than ever as three men came running down to the ring.

I stayed in my position as the three men entered the ring, then, upon entering, they started attacking Santino. Ashley entered the ring and ran to my side, making sure I was okay, while Carlito entered the ring and got a good beating from Legacy.

I stayed in the corner and watched in awe at how each fierce punch was perfectly executed.

Soon, Santino and Carlito were stretched across the ring, neither one was moving. Legacy was standing in the center of the rings, smirking proudly. Then, they turned to look at us. Now, I was standing and leaning on Ashley's shoulder for support. Randy stepped closer to us, then, went past us and out of the ring. Ted and Cody followed. Ashley and I looked on as they walked up the ramp.

* * *

Once we were backstage, I let go of Ashley and stood up straight, but I still held my abdomen, which Ashley noticed.

"Maria, are you hurt?" She asked, concerned.

"I'm fine. My stomach just hurts from when Santino slammed into me." I faked a smile.

Truth is; I _am _hurt. Santino crashed into me pretty hard and my stomach was aching ever since. I brushed that thought off, I would be fine. Besides, there were other things to think about as Randy, Cody, and Ted approached us.

"Hey guys," Cody said cheerfully as he approached us.

"Hey," we replied in unison.

"So Maria, are you alright? That looked like it hurt," Ted smiled.

"Yeah Ted, I'm fine. Thanks for asking."

I liked Ted-as a friend, of course. He was nice, charming, and could easily make me laugh. He was also very flirty with me, not just me though, with everyone. He was the kind of guy who would playfully flirt-if that's what you wanna call it-with all the divas, and even some of the wrestlers, it was actually quite hilarious.

"So…Any plans for tonight?" Ashley asked to no one in particular.

"Not really, probably gonna get a few drinks from the hotel bar or something," Cody answered.

"Oh cool, maybe we'll meet you there if we're in the same hotel."

"I know you'll meet _me _tonight," another voice said as he reached us and draped his arm around Ashley.

Ashley looked irritated and turned to face the man standing next to her who was proudly wearing a smirk.

"Adam, what have I told you about personal space?" She asked rather calmly.

He brought his face next to hers, and whispered in her ear, "I don't remember."

Ashley forcefully pushed him away from her, "Get away from me," she yelled, outraged.

I giggled from looking at Ashley's reaction and watched as they started to bicker.

I felt eyes watching me and turned around to see captivating, blue eyes staring down at me.

I jumped up a little, obviously startled, "Hi Randy."

"Hey," he had a light smirk tugging at his lips, "So, will I see you tonight?"

"What?"

"At the bar, will I see you there?"

"Oh," I smiled, call me crazy but I think he was asking me out.

Wait, what am I saying?

_Randy Orton_ asks _me _out? Ha, in my dreams.

"Y-Yeah, I'll be there. But I don't know if it's the same bar, I'm staying in the Four-"

"I know where you're staying, it's the same hotel as me. So, I'll see you there?"

"Okay. Yeah, I'll see you there." I nod, still processing his previous comment.

"Okay, bye." He said, then, walked away with Ted and Cody who were still amused from Adam and Ashley's argument.

"Ugh, I don't have time to argue with you and your conceited self. C'mon Maria," she said as she pulled me along.

"So, Ashley…" I began.

"Yeah?"

"I think Randy asked me out." I smiled sheepishly at her.

I watched as she shook her head, then sighed, "Let's talk about it once we reach the hotel."

"Okay," I grinned, still somewhat excited from my conversation with the Viper.

* * *

Thanks for reading, please review. :) I know this chapter was short, but I wanted to get it up as soon as I could. :) The next chapter will be longer, though. :)


	6. He's Randy Orton

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thanks to xRustyDoll, barnsley gal 09, wAcKiEjAcKiE826, pajama pants5, Animal-Viper-Cena Fan, cherrycokerocks, dibiaselover, and tvrox12 for reviewing the last chapter. :)_

**Chapter Six - He's Randy Orton**

* * *

"For the last time, he did _not_ ask you out."

"Yes he did, it wasn't a direct statement but the message behind-"

Ashley laughed out of frustration, "No. Maria, he just asked if he'd see you at the bar. That's all. Don't make this a bigger deal than it is."

I opened my mouth to protest when I realized she was right. He did _not_ ask me out. It shouldn't even matter that he said anything at all because…Well, because I shouldn't care. Key word; _shouldn't. _But it _did_ matter, and it bothered me that it mattered.

I sat on the edge of the bed, "What's happening to me?" I asked, desperate for an answer.

Ashley walked over to me and sat beside me, "What do you mean?"

"I mean, like what's going on? Why do I suddenly have an interest in him?"

"Maria, we're ladies."

"Ladies? Really? _That's _your answer? What does that have to do with this?"

"Well yeah, 'women' sounds too old, and 'girls' sounds too young."

"…Okay, but again, what does this have anything to do with my situation?"

"Well, you're probably desperate."

"Oh gee, thanks." I replied sarcastically.

"No, I didn't mean it like that. You feel lonely, because you don't have a boyfriend."

"Once again, thanks for pointing that out." I commented as I rolled my eyes.

"Hush, let me finish. So, you're obsessing over any _compliment _he's given you." She emphasized 'compliment' because she-of course-didn't think that it was a compliment.

"No Ashley, I'm not feeling lonely or anything. I'm getting a huge push and life's good right now-better than ever, actually."

"Maybe it's like a mood-swing or something."

"That's what I thought."

"Well, we _are_ ladies. Having mood swings is like breathing for us."

I laughed, "True."

"So, let's get ready and go down to the bar."

* * *

As we stepped into the crowded room, I looked around noticing that this wasn't reserved for WWE employees like last week. _Great. _

Ashley went up to the bartender-like our usual routine. I, on the other hand, wasn't in the mood to eat, drink, or do anything. I was looking around, trying to find someone in particular.

"He's not here yet Maria."

"What are you talking about?" I asked, trying to act as if I was oblivious to what she was talking about.

"You know what-or should I say _who_-I'm talking about." She winked.

I rolled my eyes and smiled, "How do you know, anyway?"

"Know what? That he's not here or who _he _is?"

"The first one," I answered.

She shrugged, "I just do."

I rolled my eyes, "I'm gonna go look around."

"Call me if you see him."

"Alright." I said as I disappeared into the crowd.

* * *

I looked around the entire place, but couldn't find him.

I sighed and was going to head back to Ashley when someone tapped my shoulder.

I jumped up and turned around to find _him _standing there.

"Were you looking for me?" He smiled.

"I…" I couldn't finish my sentence, I just froze. I knew I'd curse myself for doing this later. I mean, _come on, _I was just standing there, staring at him.

"Ashley told me you were looking for us, so I came to find you."

"Oh…Yeah, I was," I finally managed to say.

He nodded slowly, and smirked while watching me closely.

I would have melted right there if he flashed that smirk of his again, but I knew this _"feeling" _was just momentary and I shouldn't care for his smirk or for him.

"So…Where are Ted and Cody?"

"Somewhere," He smirked.

What was I supposed to say to _that_?

"…Where exactly is _'somewhere'_?" I asked.

He stepped closer to me, "They're around here somewhere."

I wanted to step back but my feet didn't agree and stood firmly in place, "Oh okay."

"Yeah," he nodded.

"So…We should go find them."

"Mhm," he agreed.

"Okay…Let's go." I walked past him and head over to Ashley.

As I was walking back I could almost _feel _him watching me. Once I spotted Ashley, I walked over to her and took a seat beside her.

"Go away, Adam."

"Just one dance, come on."

"No."

"Hey Adam," I greeted him.

"Hey Maria," he smiled.

I saw Ted and Cody sitting beside Ashley, "Hey guys,"

"Hi Maria," they said in unison.

"So what's going on?" I asked.

"Adam's asking-" Cody began, but was cut off by Ashley.

"Adam's _harassing _me."

"It's not harassing if you like the attention," Adam winked.

She rolled her eyes, and added "Yes, it's like a dream come true."

"I know," he smirked.

"Ugh," she said, frustrated.

"You're so adorable when you're angry," he smirked.

"Oh, then I must be gorgeous right now," she rolled her eyes.

"Somebody's full of themselves."

Ashley gasped, and I watched as Ted and Cody chuckled.

I smiled and turned my head to see Randy walking up to us. He took a seat next to mine.

"What took you so long? I thought you were right behind me," I asked.

He shrugged, "So what's happening with them?" He pointed to Adam and Ashley.

"They're arguing."

"As usual," he chuckled.

"Yeah," I smiled.

"You look nice," he complimented.

I felt a blush creep onto my cheeks, "Thanks, you look good too," I smiled.

He looked at me and smirked, then turned his head to Adam, who was walking to the dance floor with Ashley, and she wasn't struggling, she was actually going _with _him.

"Wow, how did _that _happen?" I asked.

"He said he'd leave her alone afterwards," Ted answered.

"Oh okay," I laughed.

"So Maria, excited for next week?" Cody asked.

"What's next week?" I ask.

"Oh, you don't know yet. There's going to be a match, all of Legacy versus Santino, Carlito, and Primo."

"That's awesome."

"Yeah. That's not all; you and Ashley are going to be ringside in Legacy's corner," he smiled.

"Really? That's great, so the whole storyline gets started then, huh?"

"Yeah."

"You think you can handle all of the boos and jeers?" Ted asked, smirking.

"Boos? I thought you guys were going to turn face?"

"It's not final yet. They're also considering turning you and Ashley heel."

"Really? I hope they do. I've always wanted to be heel," I smiled.

"It's actually really hard."

"How so?"

"Well, the fans hate you, they don't cheer for you in matches, and all the posters-don't even get me started on those."

"Ah, I think I can handle it."

"I hope so, just don't be sensitive and you'll be fine."

"Thanks for the advice," I smiled.

"Sure," he nodded.

"I'm getting bored," Cody whined.

"Find someone to dance with," Ted suggested.

"Come with me."

"I will. If you go alone, you'll never get a girl to dance with you," Ted smirked.

"Shut up," Cody rolled his eyes.

I laughed as they walked away, then, noticed Randy staring at me.

I gave him a small smile, "Yes?"

"You intrigue me, Maria."

"I do?"

"Yes. You're so…_different _from everyone else."

"…Thanks?" I say, not sure if it's a compliment or not.

He chuckles, "Yeah, I mean it in a good way."

"To be honest, you're quite intriguing yourself."

He raises his eyebrow, questioning me.

"You're this quiet and reserved guy one minute and the next; you're this really nice, funny, and friendly guy."

He smirked, "Maria, I'm neither of those. I'm Randy Orton."

"What does that mean?"

"You'll find out soon enough," he stood up, getting ready to leave when I grabbed his hand.

He turned around and smirked, "Yes?"

"You're complicated," I guessed.

He shook his head, "I'm Randy Orton, Maria."

Then he leaned down, and kissed my cheek before leaving, "I'll see you later," were his parting words.

My heart was racing, my cheeks felt hot-one area in particular, and I couldn't help but have an enormous grin on my face.

What just happened? Oh, I know, Randy Orton kissed my cheek. I sighed dreamily. For once, I was content with this feeling I had towards him.

* * *

I know this chapter came out later than expected but I had a busy weekend, and when I had time to work on this, I kept getting distracted. :) I made this one longer to make up for the lateness though. :) Please review, thanks. :)


	7. To Dance Or Not To Dance

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thanks to barnsley gal 09, tvrox12, xRustydoll, wAcKiEjAcKiE826, dibiaselover, and Animal-Viper-Cena Fan. :)  
_

**Chapter Seven - To Dance Or Not To Dance**_  
_

* * *

"I…He…Randy," after the small moment of feeling content, I started to realize what happened and began to say incomplete sentences to myself.

After a moment, I saw Ashley walking over to where I was.

"Hey," she said cheerfully. I would question her joyful mood, but I couldn't get myself to say anything, instead, I stared at her with a confused look on my face.

"What?" She asked. She looked behind her to make sure I wasn't staring at something else. When she didn't see anything, she turned back around to me, "Are you okay, Maria?"

"I..." I blinked a couple of times and broke out of the trance, "I'm fine."

"No, no you're not. You never stare at me like that. What's wrong? Did something happen while I was gone?"

I shook my head, "No, no, no. I was just…staring into space," I lied.

"You were looking _directly _at me," She crossed her arms, waiting for me to tell her what I was avoiding.

I took a deep breath, "Okay, I'll tell you," I gave in.

She smiled, "Good."

"Well Randy and I were talking and…"

When I stayed quiet, she motioned with her hands for me to get on with the story.

"…And he was leaving, but before he left, he kissed my cheek."

She groaned, "That's it? _That's _why you're acting like _this_?"

I stayed quiet and looked down, "It's not a big deal, is it?" I asked, embarrassed of how dramatic I was acting earlier.

She sighed and put her hand around my back, "Maria, he's like that with everyone. It's only a friendly gesture."

I looked up and mustered up a small smile, "Yeah," I nodded, "I know."

She gave me a sympathetic look, "Let's leave all of this behind us. After all, it's only a mood swing, right? We shouldn't let it ruin anything."

"Of course not." I smiled enthusiastically.

She smiled, "So, the night is still young, do you want to-"

"Dance?" Adam cut her off as he approached us.

"Wh-What are you doing?" Ashley questioned.

"I'm asking you to dance. Is it really not that obvious?" He chuckled.

"Shut up. Why are you here again? You said you'd leave me alone if I danced with you."

"Yeah, but this is important."

"What?"

"Do you, Ashley, want to dance with me, Adam?"

She rolled her eyes, "You make it sound like you're asking me to marry you. But no, I, Ashley, don't want to dance with you, Adam," she mocked him.

"Mimicry is the best form of flattery," he smirked.

"I wasn't 'mimicking' you, I was _mocking._"

"Same thing. Anyways, will you?"

"Will I what?"

"Dance with me."

"I already answered that, just because you ask again doesn't mean I'll change my-"

I cut her off, "Yes, she'll dance with you Adam."

I watched as Adam smirked and Ashley began to protest.

"No, no I will-"

I interrupted her once more, "What are you waiting for, Adam? Go dance!" I laughed.

"Sure thing. Thanks, Maria." He smiled and dragged Ashley away.

I smiled at them, and then turned around to order a drink when I saw someone take a seat beside me.

"Hey Maria," he greeted.

"Oh, hi Cody, any luck finding someone to dance with?" I asked, smiling.

"Nah, except a bunch of fan girls," he shuddered.

I laughed, "Well then, let's dance."

"Who? Us?"

"Yeah, come on. It'll be fun."

"Okay," he smiled.

We locked arms and walked onto the dance floor.

"So…" He began.

"Are we going to do the whole extended _'so'_ conversation?" I asked.

He chuckled, "No, I was just trying to lighten the tension."

"What tension?"

He shrugged, then, while shaking his head, he says, "I don't even know."

We both laughed and then I studied the way were dancing, we were completely in sync. My hands were placed around his neck, and his around my waist. I smiled up at him.

It was funny how everything was changing so suddenly. I've gotten closer to Randy and Cody ever since I found out about the storyline, I've got this weird _'mood swing' _thing going on, and all these confused feelings for the Viper.

Cody smiled back at me, and laughed slightly, "What?"

"Nothing, I was just smiling."

"Is there something on my face?"

"No Cody," I laughed, "I was _just_ smiling."

"Why?"

"I wanted to smile. Can't I smile anymore?"

He pretended to think, then, said, "No, not without a reason."

I laughed, "Okay, I was smiling because I'm happy."

"Why?"

I groaned playfully, "Because I wasn't having a good time earlier and then talking to you cheered me up."

"Oh," I saw his cheeks turn slightly red, "well you _could _say _'thanks'_" he said, jokingly.

"Yeah, I _could, _but since you asked me so many questions, I won't," I smirked.

"Yes, yes you will."

I rolled my eyes, "Is that supposed to be a threat, because it wasn't even _close _to intimidating."

He chuckled, "Yeah, I need to work on that. I should get lessons from Randy, huh?"

I got chills when Cody said _his _name, but I brushed it off quickly.

"Yeah," I laughed, "a lot of lessons."

"Yeah, I know."

"Like _a lot _of lessons," I smirked.

"Okay, I get it. You can stop teasing me."

I giggled, "It's entertaining though."

He rolled his eyes, then, smiled, "You're a pretty good dancer."

"Aw thanks, you're not half bad yourself," I winked.

"I will take that as a compliment from the _innocent_, Maria."

I laughed, "I won't be so_ 'innocent' _after I join Legacy."

"It'll be cool seeing you as a heel, though. You'll be like the feisty redhead, Maria."

"Feisty?"

"Yeah, you'd be the ultimate heel diva."

"How so?" I questioned.

"Well honestly, you have this sexy, heel vibe to you."

I blushed, "Thanks. I'm delighted that I get to work with you guys."

"Us too, and you know, we can always help you train."

I smiled, "Oh yeah, definitely."

"Randy could help you train. He's an awesome trainer. He has taught me so much."

I nodded, "Mhm, that would be…," I thought of the right word, "Swell."

"Swell?" he chuckled, "Who says _that _anymore?"

"I do. Got a problem with that, Rhodes?"

"Instead of getting lessons on how to be intimidating from Randy, I should just get them from _you._"

"Of course," I laughed, "Alright Cody, I think I've done enough _partying _for the night."

"Already?" He asked, surprised, "It's not even midnight yet."

"Yeah, Ashley and I are gonna watch some movies back in the hotel room. That's usually how we spend most nights."

"No, c'mon Maria. Stay a little longer."

"I would, but-" I began to refuse his request, but someone tapped me on the shoulder.

I turned around to stand face to face with the Viper, Randy Orton.

He's back again? _Great. _I was slightly disappointed in seeing him again, because I was planning on keeping him off of my mind for the night. But that wouldn't be happening, seeing as to how he was now standing in front of me.

"Mind if I cut in, Cody?"

He smiled, "Not at all, Randy. I actually have to go to the restroom."

"We didn't need to know that," I laughed.

"Yeah, well you do now," Cody chuckled and walked away, leaving me and Randy to stand there alone.

"So, do you want to dance?"

"Sure," I smiled.

I wasn't sure if I was doing the smartest thing by going to dance with Randy Orton, but I knew that I was happy. And as for right now, that's all that really matters.

* * *

Okay, I know I haven't updated this in a long time, but I finally got around to it, and I really want to get updates for this story out as fast as I can. One thing's for sure, I'll _never _just leave this story, because I get so upset when writers do that. :) I know this chapter was boring, but the next will be better, and hopefully longer. :D Please review, thanks. :)


	8. He's Gone

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thanks to Dibiaselover, xRustyDoll, and wAcKiEjAcKiE826 for reviewing the last chapter. :) _

**Chapter Eight – He's gone**

* * *

Randy placed his hand lightly, but firmly, on my lower back, leading me to a more secluded area of the dance floor. Just as we were about to dance, a slow song started to play. This was just _perfect _timing. I knew it was too late to back out of this dance now, so I rested my hands on his shoulders as he placed his arms around my waist and we began to dance.

"You look tense," he commented.

"Oh? I'm not, though," I lied.

"You're a bad liar."

I blushed, embarrassed. "So I've been told," I grinned.

"I've heard you took dance lessons before you got into wrestling."

"Oh yeah, but that was a long time ago."

He nodded.

I turned my head ever so subtly to look for Ashley because I knew the awkward silence would be coming shortly.

I spotted her a few feet away from us. She was dancing with Adam-it looked like she was miserable. She turned her head towards us, and then did a double take to make sure she was seeing what she was. Randy Orton dancing…With me.

She had a confused look on her face and mouthed, "What's going on?"

I gave her pleading eyes and bit my lip-as if telling her to come here and help me get out of this dance.

She mouthed "Oh."

I smiled, somewhat relieved that this was going to be over soon.

But then she turned to look at Adam, then back at me, a smirk slowly tugging at her lips.

I sighed. She wasn't going to come because I made her dance with Adam. I rolled my eyes at her and looked back at Randy. I decided to make small talk for as long as I could and avoid the awkward silence which was bound to come at one point or another.

"So Randy, who's the hottest diva to you?"

A hint of a smirk appeared on his lips, "Why?"

I shrugged, "I'm just curious, I guess."

He licked his lips, then, began to speak, "Hottest diva?"

"Yeah."

He thought for a minute, "Oh, it's definitely that one diva. She came in through the diva search, debuted as a backstage interviewer..."

I can't think of a diva that did-or _does-_that. Who was he talking about? I asked, "Who is it?"

"You tell me," he smirked.

I thought to myself then I realized that who he was describing was _very _much like _me_.

My eyes widened, "Me?"

His smirk grew wider.

"Okay. But really, tell me who it _actually_ is?"

"Maria."

"Yes?"

"No, I mean 'Maria' as in _you._"

I looked down trying to hide the fact that I was blushing crazily.

I heard him chuckle and then looked up, "Thanks," I beamed.

He nodded.

"You're hot too," I blurted out, then cursed myself for doing so.

He chuckled, "Thanks, I know."

I laugh, "Someone's full of themselves."

"What? It's not like you're saying something I don't already know," he winked.

I smiled, "Alright, fair enough."

He was about to say something when Ashley tapped me on the shoulder-she has _the _worst timing ever-I turned to her, "What?" I hissed.

"Can we go now? I'm getting tired of dancing."

"But I was still dancing."

She looked behind me, then, at me, "Looks like someone thought otherwise."

"What?" I turned around to find Randy gone.

"Where did he go?" Ashley asked.

"I don't know!"

"I think I see him over there, he's…Oh."

"…He's dancing with those girls." I finished her sentence.

"Yeah…" She said, understandingly.

I don't know what it was but seeing him dancing with a bunch of random girls right after dancing with me-actually, he hadn't even _finished _dancing with me-hurt so much more than I thought it would.

My eyes stayed focused on him, "I'm going to go get some fresh air...You should go up to the room, though."

"Do you want me to go with you?" She asked worriedly.

"No, I just want to clear my mind. Thanks for the offer, though. You should go up to the room, watch a movie. I'll be there in a little while."

"..Alright," she said hesitantly, then, began to walk towards the elevators.

I took one last look at Randy, _"Jerk, stupid jerk,"_ I seethed.

* * *

As soon as I got outside, my eyes started stinging with tears. I hated this. I hated _him. _I can say, without a doubt, whatever 'feelings' I had towards Randy, they were gone. _Every single one. _I don't know why I had this really bitter hatred towards Randy all of a sudden. I just felt so _betrayed. _It was stupid though, it's not like I should even care who he dances with but it was the fact that he didn't even tell me. He just left. I don't care. I never liked him, anyway. They weren't even _real _feelings; it was all from a mood swing.

I sat down on a bench and buried my face in my hands and tears began to pour down my cheeks. I wiped away the tears as they came, and tried to get myself together. I took a deep breath to calm myself, then, I headed back for the hotel. I just wanted to go watch movies with my best friend, have fun, and forget about the dance, those feelings, and especially about _him. _

* * *

I opened the door to the hotel room I was staying in and saw Ashley sitting on the bed watching _"Ratatouille."_

I smiled at the sight, and then Ashley turned to look at me. She pressed 'pause' and asked, "Have you been crying, Maria?"

I smiled weakly at her.

"Ugh. Why do you do this to yourself?" She groaned.

"I'm a lady, I'm fragile."

"No, you're a diva. You're anything _but _fragile."

I smiled, "Right. Well I'm feeling all better and I think a night full of movies and junk food is properly in order."

"I do too, Miss Kanellis. I do too."

I laugh, "Alright, let me change into more comfortable clothes and then we can get started."

She nodded and I went into the bathroom to change.

I knew that this is _just_ what I needed to get my mind off of everything that took place tonight. I was genuinely excited about watching movies and relaxing with Ashley. I knew I'd eventually have to deal with everything sometime but I decided I wasn't going to think about that until that time came. I looked in the mirror at my tear-stained face and I began to splash water on my face. After I washed my face, I looked in the mirror and here's what I saw; someone who was trying to pretend everything was okay when _nothing _at all was. A few tears slid down my cheeks but I quickly washed them away.

Once I was sure I was going to be okay, I went out and plopped onto the bed, right next to Ashley.

She smiled at me then pressed 'play' and the movie began to play.

I knew deep down I was hurt-I don't know why, though-but I was going to forget about my troubles-at least for the night.

* * *

_So I finally updated this. :) I hope you guys are liking this fanfic so far, I really liked writing this chapter, and I'll update soon-hopefully sometime during this week. :) Thanks for all your support. 3 Please review. :)_


	9. What's Going On?

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

_Thanks to wAcKiEjAcKiE826, Animal-Viper-Cena Fan, XxDiBiase-LoverxX, tvrox12, laney-au, & John Cena's Field Hockey Star for reviewing the last chapter. :)_

**Chapter Nine - What's Going On?**

* * *

I slept in till ten today, which was so refreshing. Then, I went to an autograph signing around noon, and now I was on my way back to the hotel to laze around with Ashley for the rest of the day. I should have known nothing ever goes as planned.

I stepped into the hotel, and brushed tiny snowflakes off of my hair. As I made my way towards the elevators, I pulled out my phone and started checking all of my e-mails and such. I entered the elevator and pressed "7" for my floor. I hadn't paid enough attention to my surroundings to notice I was walking into a trap.

"Is it snowing outside?" A deep voice asked.

I knew that voice all too well. I closed my eyes and cursed myself-if only for a moment-for not being aware that I got into an elevator with _Randy Orton_.

"Mhm," I answered rather coldly. I wasn't interested in making small talk with _him_.

"So, where are you coming from?"

"Outside," I replied.

He chuckled, "Yeah, I kind of figured that out for myself, Maria. I meant _where _from outside?"

"I had an autograph signing."

"Oh, sounds fun," he said.

When I didn't reply he asks, "Maria, are you okay?"

The elevator doors opened and instead of answering his question, I say, "...This is my floor," I point towards the hallway and then walk out of the elevator. I start walking-it was more of a speed walk, though-down the hallway to my room.

* * *

I open the door to my room only to find it empty. I sighed, being alone was not something I needed-or wanted-right now. I set my purse down, crossed my arms and tapped my foot. What was I to do now? My eyes scanned the room until they came across a letter neatly folded and placed on my pillow. I picked it up and read it;  
_"Maria, I went out with Mickie for the day-we decided that we needed a spa day, & by 'we' I mean Mickie. Hahaha I know you're probably glad to get some time to yourself to relax so just enjoy the day-let's hope I do too. ;) Okay, well, I'll see you later tonight, bye. :) -Ashley"_

On _any_ other day I would be _overjoyed _to get time to myself, but that's not the case today, now, is it? A sigh escapes my glossed lips as I plop onto my bed. I grab my pillow and bury my face in it. This is so frustrating. I hate the feeling of being alone.

"Maria?" A familiar voice asked.

I looked up to see that I had left the door open, I smiled at the figure standing at my door, "Hey, what are you doing here?"

"Just passing by," Adam smiled.

"Well, if you're not busy, you should stay and we could do something?"

"What kind of something?" He smirked.

"An appropriate something, Adam," I giggled.

He chuckled, "I would but I actually have some meetings to do, so maybe another time?" He offered.

I smiled, "Oh okay, and of course."

"Okay, well I better get going. Bye Maria," he waved as he left my room.

"Bye," I said slightly disappointed.

* * *

"_Welcome back to Monday Night RAW. In the ring is Maria, the former girlfriend of Santino Marella. And speaking of Santino, he's sitting here ringside watching this match scheduled between Maria and Beth Phoenix," _J.R. said on commentary.

That time alone a few days ago was actually really helpful, I got my thoughts sorted out, and I realized that I didn't like Randy anymore. I still avoided him, though. I really got myself together in this past week, and I was proud of myself for being able to put this whole situation behind me.

Beth started the match off by delivering violent punches to me; I stumbled back into the turnbuckle and held a hand to my jaw. She came charging towards me but I raised my leg and her face connected with my foot. She stumbled back a few steps and I took this time to start delivering punches of my own to her. I ran back towards the ropes when Santino grabbed my foot and made me fall. Beth then stood me up and next thing I know; I'm face down on the mat, victim to the cruel Glam-Slam.

_One,_

_two,_

_three. _

The match was over, I lost. I was getting ready to sit up and give Beth a glare as she walked up the ramp with Santino-as it said to do so in the script-when I felt someone grab my hair and pull me up.

I turned around to face Santino. What was he doing? Was this part of the script? I had no idea what I was supposed to do now because I arrived late today and didn't get through the entire script for tonight. I only knew about Santino costing me the match and leaving with Beth-the beginning of_ 'Glamarella.' _But apparently they made a few changes-it wasn't that bad, Santino was probably going to push me down and then walk away with Beth or something.

I looked terrified as I looked up at Santino. He smiled smugly and then pushed me down harshly, I could see he wasn't done yet as he started walking towards me again. Then all of a sudden, the crowd came alive and the man running down the ring to come to my rescue was getting a tremendous reaction from them. I looked up to see that the man was none other than the Viper, Randy Orton.

Why did it have to be _him? _I sighed and acted as if I was hurt while Randy entered the ring and began to deliver those merciless punches to Santino. Santino fell back and when he finally was able to get up, he was hit with a ferocious RKO as the crowd roared on.

I could tell Randy was in the _'zone' _but he looked furious, I know he was supposed to look angry, but he was _way _too angry, even for his character and that made me nervous.

Then he appeared to have calmed down and looked at me. My breath got caught in my throat as he walked towards me. I was actually quite _scared_ as of right now. I don't know why, though, I knew he wasn't going to hurt me, it's just I've never been this close to him when he's in his _zone. _

I didn't know exactly what to expect right now. Then he reached down and grabbed my arm and pulled me up to my feet. I stumbled back a few steps and stared at him as he did the same to me. I blinked a few times and then rolled out of the ring and began my way up the ramp as Randy's theme began to play throughout the arena and he did his famous pose for the now-electric crowd.

* * *

Once I was backstage I saw Eve heading towards me.

"Hey Maria," she said cheerfully.

"Hey," I smiled.

"I saw you out there, you were great. You really looked like you had no idea what was going on."

I gave her a small laugh, "Yeah, but that's because I didn't. I wasn't able to go through the entire script."

She smirked, "Late again, huh?"

"You know me so well, Eve," I laughed.

"Of course, I _did _travel with you the entire time we were on Smackdown," she smiled, "so anyway, you should go change into something more comfortable than your ring attire."

"Yeah, well I'll see you around."

"Mhm, and we need to hang out soon. I miss our frappe runs."

"Definitely," I laugh, "Okay, well I should go. Good luck on your match, Eve. Bye," I wave as I start to walk away.

As I was heading to the locker room, I felt a hand grab my arm and turn me around. I looked up at who the individual was and it was none other than the man that came to my rescue a few minutes ago.

"Oh, Randy…What are you-"

"Maria, why are you so…not like yourself recently?" He interrupted.

"Huh?"

"You've been avoiding me lately, and the way you acted in the elevator the other day was rather harsh."

"Harsh?" I laugh, "_You're _going to tell me about being harsh? Okay Randy, please do enlighten me."

"See? That's it right there. That's the rude attitude of yours that I've had to deal with. I should have let Santino pummel you out there."

"Excuse me? The only thing that was _rude_, was you leaving in the middle of the dance-without even so much as telling me why-and going to dance with a bunch of random girls. And let's get one thing straight, as of right now, I would have _preferred_ being beaten by Santino rather than having to actgrateful to _you_, okay? And it's a storyline so don't even try to act like you came down there just because you were being heroic."

"So you've been like this all because I left without telling? Wow Maria, I didn't think you were so…_So childish_. Why don't you grow up? I mean, _come on. _That's a petty excuse to act the way you did."

"Maybe I am childish, but at least I'm not a rude, conceited _jerk!" _I storm away from him and into the locker room.

"Maria, is everything alright? I heard yelling coming from outside," one of my long time friends, Layla, asks.

I manage to give her a small smile, "At the moment, I'm pretty upset but I'll be fine after I take a quick shower."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Not really. Thanks, though," I say politely.

She smiled back and then went back to doing what she was before I came in-which was putting together an outfit for a segment she has later on in the show.

* * *

As I stepped out of the locker room getting ready to head back to the hotel, I realized I wasn't alright with the way I left things with Randy. Maybe I should go talk to him? I really didn't want to spend the entire night thinking about that encounter with him so I was just going to go talk to him before I left. Yeah, that sounds good. I should just get it over with now rather than be haunted by all of this later.

I walked down the long hallways, looking for his personal dressing room. I spotted it down at the end of the hall. As I made my way over to the door, I started doubting my decision but I decided to just go through with it as I knocked daringly on the door.

"Come in," I heard his deep voice mumble.

I opened the door cautiously and entered the room.

He looked up, and was obviously surprised to see me, "Maria…"

"Randy, I'm really sorry. I made a big deal out of nothing and I acted, like you said, childish. I really hope we can put this behind us and move on," I didn't really mean _all _of this but as long as it got us back to being friends-or rather _friendly-_with each other, that's all that mattered.

"Oh...Yeah, that's okay. And listen, I'm sorry too; I was being a jerk to you back there and at the bar."

"That's fine," I smiled, "So, we're good?" I asked.

"Yeah," he chuckled.

"Okay, well that's all I wanted to say. Bye Randy," I waved as I walked away.

Wow. That was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I'm not complaining, though. But then a weird feeling started creeping upon me. I didn't know what it was but it was like my stomach was in a knot-I could just feel like something _bad_ was going to happen very soon. I felt like I shouldn't be messing with Randy like this-I'm getting too comfortable around him and that's dangerous.

* * *

I lay in my bed, the bad feeling _still _in the pit of my stomach. I closed my eyes and images of the intensity on Randy's face earlier in the ring tonight came into my mind. He was absolutely terrifying and I don't understand _how _I was able to yell at him earlier tonight when he followed me backstage-I had just felt outraged. How _dare _he call _me _childish?

Suddenly, I regretted apologizing to him since that did _nothing _in making me stop thinking about him. Instead, all it did was demean me. I mean, why did _I _apologize first? He should be the one apologizing to me and _why _did I agree with him and call myself childish? I wasn't childish; he was just rude and insensitive.

I was starting to regret everything now. I let him win. I basically presented myself as someone he can walk all over and I won't do anything. No. No, I'm going to go to his hotel room and give him a piece of my mind.

I got in the elevator and pushed the button for the seventeenth for his floor-Cody had given me his room number a few days ago and said that Randy was right across the hall from his room. I believe Randy's room number had a '36' in it, I wasn't sure but if I couldn't remember I'd just go and look for his room.

When I finally reached the 17th floor, I looked around for the room numbers just as I saw a door open and out came Randy Orton. His shirt was all wrinkled up and he was buttoning it rather quickly. I would have assumed he was just rushing to go some place when another person came out behind him. Her hair was messy, her make-up was smudged and her dress was a tad bit too short for her.

I didn't know what to make of this scenario until I saw her lean in and connect her lips with his.

My eyes widened and I stumbled back a few steps. I couldn't comprehend what I was seeing. Why was he kissing her? Why was _she _kissing _him_? I watched their lip lock grow more intense and felt disgusted. This was wrong, it was just morally wrong.

"Randy and Maryse? But I thought she was dating Ted…" I whispered to myself before disappearing back into the elevator and down into my room.

* * *

This _finally _got updated. xD I do apologize for not doing this sooner but I got real lazy and forgot what with school and all that. :) I hope this chapter-_the _longest chapter so far-makes up for it. ;D hahaha _Please review. :)_


	10. Meeting The Nexus

There Is A Light In Your Eyes

**Meeting the Nexus**

_Thank you to tvrox12, demonrose321, DiivaLover, Animal-Viper-Cena Fan, XxDiBiase-LoverxX, wAcKiEjAcKiE826, oz-angel1, Shortey, 208x, RkoxMizanin, & riaxxxrandyxxxmandyxxxforever for reviewing the last chapter. I really appreciated all of your feedback. :)_

_

* * *

_

"I can't believe you're making me go to this stupid party," I complained as Ashley dragged me out to the parking lot of our hotel.

"Well you've been way too depressed lately and since you won't tell me why, this is the _least _you can do for me," she stated as I slipped into the passenger seat of her car.

"Why do you want to go anyway?" I asked.

"It might be fun…_And _you need to go out and enjoy yourself, so technically I'm doing this for _you._"

"Yeah, well I don't _want _to go."

"Oh please, like you actually know what you want."

I thought for a moment before I spoke again, "Wait, what's that supposed to mean?"

Ashley turned her head to look at me and then chuckled, "Just have a good time tonight, okay?"

I stared at her suspiciously, "Yeah…Okay."

* * *

We arrived at the party about twenty minutes later. We walked in and there were plenty of WWE employees. Everyone from each brand was going to be here, they just hadn't arrived yet. A small smile touched my lips; it would be nice to see some of my friends from Smackdown here again.

Ashley turned to look at me, "Hey, I'm going to go find Layla, I haven't seen her in a while."

"Um, okay…I'll go-"

"No, Maria. I don't want to have you sit there and listen to us gossip all night, I want you to go and have fun, okay?"

"But-" I began to protest.

"Maria, please. Go have fun, for me," she pleaded.

I sighed, "I don't like when you pull out the 'for me' card…But I'll go and be social, _for you,_" I gave her a slight glare.

She smiled, "I know you don't and thank you."

I watched as she dissolved into the crowd and then looked around the place, searching for people I could talk to. Unfortunately, most of the Divas hadn't arrived just yet so I couldn't really talk to many people. Just as I turned around to go sit at a table; I bumped into someone who happened to be walking by behind me.

I would've fallen back if not for the arm that quickly wrapped around my waist and held me up until I regained my balance.

"Oh God, I'm so sorry," I said as I began to look up from the muscular chest to the face of the towering man.

He smiled. "No, it's my fault. I should have been watching where I was going," he said in an English accent.

I smiled, "Well, thank you. You saved me from an embarrassing moment."

He removed his arm from around my waist as I stepped back so we weren't standing so close.

He chuckled. "You're welcome. I don't believe we've been properly introduced, I'm Wade Barrett," he held out his hand.

"I'm Maria," I smiled as I shook his hand.

"I'm surprised you aren't intimidated by me."

"Why? Should I be?"

"No, no. It's just that most of the other Divas tend to stay out of our way."

"Our?"

"The Nexus."

"Oh," I laughed lightly. "I'm not intimidated, you seem nice."

"Thank you," he smiled. "Would you want to come and meet the rest of the Nexus?"

I would have refused to go had it not been for the fact that I didn't want to be alone for the rest of the night. Besides, Wade was a lot nicer than his character on TV.

"Yeah, sure," I smiled.

Wade led me to a small table where three other men were seated and they were laughing about something.

Wade cleared his throat and smiled as the three men looked towards him, "Gentlemen, I've invited Maria to join us for the night, I hope you don't mind."

"Not at all," a bald, large-built man said.

"Maria, you can sit down and just introduce yourself to them. I'll be back shortly," Wade smiled.

"Um, okay," I gave him a small smile before he walked away.

I felt _really _awkward. I was just sitting there with three men that I hadn't talked to before and the only mutual friend between us had left.

"So, uh, I'm Maria," I smiled politely.

"I'm Skip Sheffield," the guy from before replied as he held out his hand.

I smiled as I shook his hand, "Nice to meet you, Skip."

"I'm Heath Slater," another man said.

"Nice to meet you, Heath," I smiled as we shook hands.

And then the last man spoke. "I'm Justin Gabriel," he smirked.

I smiled, "Nice to meet you, Justin."

He took my hand in his and gave me gentle kiss on my hand.

I couldn't help but smile as my cheeks grew pink.

He smirked again-obviously noticing how I was blushing.

"Who'd you come here with?" Heath asked.

"Ashley Massaro," I replied.

"Oh, okay," he nodded.

"So Maria, aren't you a valet for the Legacy?" Skip inquired.

"Something along those lines, yeah," I smiled.

"You oughta be in the Nexus, we're better," Heath winked.

I laughed, "I'd love to but I'm stuck with Legacy for now."

Justin chuckled, "You should turn on them; it'd make you a heel automatically."

"I'd rather not get on the bad side of Randy," I laughed.

"Ah, who's Orton against all of us? And we'd all protect you, right?"

"Absolutely. Now, you'll have to excuse me so I can go eat about half of the food," Heath commented.

"And I'll eat the rest," Skip added as he followed Heath to the food table.

I laughed, "Heath seems like the source of entertainment in the group."

Justin chuckled, "He is. What do you think about the others?"

"Well, Skip looks like the friendly one. Wade looks like a leader or an older brother."

"Interesting, go on."

I laughed, "What? Am I getting them all wrong?"

"No, no. You're actually doing pretty well," he smiled.

I smiled, "Oh okay. Well, you're funny, charming, & I'm guessing you're somewhat of a rebel."

"Yeah, but you forgot one thing."

"What?"

"Hot," he smiled smugly.

"Oh, I think you're getting 'hot' confused with 'conceited'," I smirked.

"Hmm, feisty. I like that," he winked.

"Thanks, I guess," I laughed. As I was looking around, I saw someone I had been meaning to talk to recently.

"Um, excuse me for a second, I'll be right back," I said as I started to get up.

"Oh, that's fine; just leave me here all alone."

I laughed, "I'll be right back."

He chuckled, "Hurry, I look lonely."

"You _are _lonely," I giggled as I walked away and fixed my eyes on a certain superstar.

* * *

"Hey, Ted?" I tapped him on the shoulders.

He turned around and smiled when he saw me, "Hey Maria!"

He pulled me into a hug as he spoke again, "You look great."

I smiled, "Thank you, you look rather dashing yourself."

He smiled, "Thanks, Maryse picked this outfit for me and you know her, she likes to be real fancy."

"Yeah, uh, speaking of Maryse…Are you guys still dating?"

"_No_, she just picked my outfit and came here as my date cause we're friends," he said sarcastically as a smile reached his lips.

"Oh," I faked a laugh. "Have you guys had any, uh, breaks or anything from each other recently?"

"No. What's with all the questions?" He chuckled.

"I just…I was curious," I lied.

He smiled, "Okay, well I'm going to go find Maryse because she's been begging me to dance +with her the whole way here and I don't want to keep her waiting any longer."

I mustered up a small smile which was as fake as ever but thankfully he didn't seem to notice, "Alright, have fun."

"You too," he smiled as he started searching the crowd, looking for Maryse.

A sigh escaped my lips. I didn't want to be the one to tell him about Randy and Maryse because I didn't want to hurt him. Yet I was hurting him by _not _telling him too. I took a deep breath, I came here to get away from all of this and that's exactly what I was going to do-or at least _attempt _to do.

I walked back to the table where Justin was sitting all alone, playing with one of the napkins.

I giggled softly, "Playing with a napkin, are we?"

He looked up towards me and smiled, "You left me all alone, remember? What was I supposed to do?"

"Look productive."

"I look productive…_And hot, _may I add."

"Not this again," I smiled teasingly as I sat down across from him.

The rest of the night was going by so much better than I expected it to be. Justin and I had hit it off instantly, and we actually moved to a different table which secluded us from a lot of the party chaos going on so we could talk.

"Okay, so we've been sitting here for most of the party, I want to dance."

"And?"

"_And_ you're going to dance with me."

"Hmm, I doubt it."

"Justin, come on!"

"No, I'm not a dancer."

"You don't have to be one, I have enough talent for the both of us," I smirked.

He smiled, "Mm, okay. On one condition though."

"What?"

"I get to buy you a drink after every dance_._"

"You're trying to get me drunk, aren't you?" I laughed.

"Absolutely," he winked playfully.

I smiled, "Okay, well sure."

"Alrighty then," he smiled.

"Let's go," I locked my arm in his and we headed for the dance floor.

* * *

I giggled, "You are _hilarious_, Sheamus."

The Irish man chuckled, "You're drunk."

I nodded slowly, "_Mhm, just a little…_"

I would have found this behavior annoying had I not been the one acting that way-I was definitely drunk.

Sheamus smiled, "Will you be alright sitting here alone? I need to go use the men's room."

I gave him an innocent smile, "Of course."

"Maybe I should wait till Justin gets back; I don't trust leaving you all alone."

"No, no! Go on and pee," I giggled.

He smiled, "Okay, but don't move."

I nodded reassuringly as he turned and walked away.

I sat there swaying my head to the music playing, when someone called my name, "Maria?"

I turned to see it was none other than Randy Orton.

I gave him a smile, "Hey Randy!"

He chuckled slightly, "Are you drunk?"

I got off of my stool and was about to give him a hug when I stumbled into his chest. He caught me before I could fall and gave me a smirk.

I laughed and looked up at him, "You look very handsome."

"Oh, so I've been told," he smiled playfully.

Had I not been drunk, I would've slapped him when I first saw him. But I was acting rather friendly towards him and I knew this wasn't going to end well.

"Yeah, I bet Maryse said that too when you slept with her," I giggled, not realizing what I had just said.

The smile on his face rapidly faded away, his face became cold and hard, & his body stiff.

He looked around as to make sure no one had heard what I said before he grabbed my wrist and dragged me outside of the building and into the chilling outdoors.

"Ow, you're hurting me!" I complained.

He grabbed my shoulders and pushed me against the wall. Then, he placed his arms on each side of me. I was trapped. There was no one else out here except us two.

I smirked and grabbed his collar, pulling him closer to my face, "You look so attractive right now." I was drunk and obviously had no idea what I was doing.

He pushed my hands away and started speaking; his voice was low and intimidating. "How do you know about Maryse?"

I began to faintly realize what was going on and wanted to be anywhere _but_ near him. "I-I should get back inside."

"You aren't leaving until I get an answer," he said, looking more furious by the second.

I was on the verge of tears. I looked down to avoid his glare.

"How do you know?" He yelled.

"Randy, you're scaring me," I choked out.

He grew frustrated and punched the brick wall, "Damn it Maria! Answer the question!"

I flinched, then, began to sob. "Randy, please!"

He looked away and clenched his jaw.

I started to shiver because of how cold it was. I hadn't even noticed that it had started snowing until now.

He turned to look at me, his face was like stone.

I tried to push him away again, "Let me go, Randy!"

He just looked away and then back at me, "Answer me."

"No! Just let me go!" I pleaded while trying to push him away.

"What's going on?" A third voice interrupted.

Randy & I turned to look from where the voice was coming from. It was Justin. Randy slowly dropped his hands to his sides and turned himself to face Justin.

"Gabriel," he smirked cunningly. "Nothing's going on," he shrugged.

I ran over to Justin and held onto his waist tightly.

Justin gave Randy a slight glare before wrapping his arm around me and starting to head back inside.

I glanced back towards Randy and could see him chuckling. I rolled my eyes and tried to forget the horrifying encounter that just took place.

* * *

"Are you sure you're okay?" A concerned Justin Gabriel asked me again for the twentieth time.

I laughed lightly, "Yes, I'm perfectly alright." That wasn't entirely true but I didn't want to worry him.

He nodded, but I could tell that he wasn't convinced.

"So, um, I think I'm going to head back to the hotel now. It's getting late and I'm pretty exhausted."

"Oh, I should drive you there; you're too drunk to get back on your own."

"The coffee actually helped a little bit. But yeah, could you take me back?" I smiled.

"Yeah, of course," he nodded.

"Okay thanks, let me just go tell Ashley," I smiled and started towards the dirty blonde who was now talking to Layla, Michelle, Mickie, & Eve.

"Hey guys," I smiled.

"Hey Maria," they all said warmly.

"Ashley, I'm gonna go back to the hotel. Justin's going to drive me there."

"Justin? The one from the Nexus?" Layla asked.

I smiled, "Yeah, him."

Ashley smiled, "Since when have you started talking to him?"

"Since tonight…"

"He's hot," Eve stated.

"He's _also _nice and funny."

Mickie smirked, "But mostly hot."

"Oh shush," I rolled my eyes playfully.

Ashley looked happy, "I knew bringing you here would be good for you."

"Yeah," I laughed. "Well, I'll see you guys later."

Ashley laughed, "Okay, but behave yourselves. I don't want to come back to find you two naked under the sheets."

I shook my head, "Oh my God. You're insane," I laughed before saying my goodbyes and heading out.

* * *

"You know, you didn't have to walk me to my room," I smiled at Justin.

"Yeah, I know. I just wanted to make sure you got to the right room," he chuckled.

I laughed, "I'm not _that _drunk."

"You couldn't press the button for your floor in the elevator."

"I told you, I lost my balance," I said.

"I'm sure you did," he grinned.

"I did! These heels aren't as comfortable as they look," I laughed.

He nodded, "Yeah…So I had fun tonight."

"Me too," I agreed.

"Maybe we could do it again sometime?" He suggested.

"Yeah, of course," I beamed.

His face lit up with a smile, "Okay, great. I'll call you."

I remembered how we had exchanged numbers earlier that night and smiled, "Yeah, that'd be great. Thanks for everything."

"Oh, no problem. I had a great time," he smiled.

I smiled as I opened my door and walked into my room. "Bye," I waved after I turned to face him again.

"Bye," he smiled before he started towards the elevators.

I closed the door and leaned against it. I smiled dreamily towards the ceiling & closed my eyes. I thought about how great a time I'd had tonight and it was all thanks to Justin. I bit my bottom lip lightly, fighting another smile. I sighed contently; I was happy tonight.

Then I came crashing back down to reality when I remembered that I'd have to face Randy eventually and images of his sadistic smirk came rushing into my mind. I'd try to avoid him as long as I possibly could but being involved in a storyline with him didn't really help my case.

Oh well, I'd deal with him when the time came. For now though, I was going to take a soothing bath and then spend the rest of the night relaxing in my hotel room. That sounded peaceful and I needed to relax before everything got complicated and tense. And somehow, I knew that that would happen sooner rather than later.

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_Hey guys, I'm so sorry that this was updated after so long. :) I just didn't have any ideas for this chapter and I was procrastinating on it but I'm going to start updating regularly again. :) So I hope you enjoy reading this & please review. :)  
_


	11. A Twist in the Story

There Is A Light In Your Eyes 

**A Twist in the Story**

_Thanks to 208x, Trixi Hart, AmaziinqxDiiva, LoVeIsN'tSiLlyAtAll94, oz-angel1, tvrox12, RkoxMizanin, Animal-Viper-Cena Fan, wwlilcraz101, John Cena's Field Hockey Star, demonrose321, soagirlforever, MarieSusy, everyxstar, & LoveIt123 for reviewing the previous chapter. :)_

* * *

I wrapped my jacket around me tightly as I made my way through the empty WWE arena. I could hear the sound of my heels echo throughout the hallway. It was a cold and rainy morning, the last thing I wanted to do was get out of bed but Stephanie wanted to talk to me about "a few things," as she had said when she called me. I guessed that it was probably about the storyline. I started to feel like this storyline was becoming more of a burden day by day. I knew I shouldn't complain though, I had been waiting for this push ever since I first started in the WWE. I tried to look as cheerful as I could before I knocked on the door to her office.

"Come in," Stephanie said.

I stepped inside and closed the door before turning to face her. "Hey," I smiled.

"Hey Maria," she smiled. "Please, have a seat," she motioned towards the two huge, leather chairs across from her. I approached her desk and took a seat in one of the chairs.

"Okay, so there are a couple of things we need to talk about. First of all, you are going to be coupled with Randy in the storyline because the segments you two have had in the previous weeks were great so we want to continue with that."

"Oh…" This was all I was able to say.

"Is there a problem?"

"Oh no, not at all," I faked a laugh. "What about Ashley though?"

"We decided to not include her in this after all," she smiled. "Now, I think it'll be rather interesting to see how it all plays out – Orton and you." Then she lowered her voice as if someone might be listening, "Maria, I should warn you; there have been some tensions rising backstage recently."

"What do you mean?" I asked, confused.

"The Nexus, they've been attacking many of the superstars and it's gotten quite dangerous to be roaming around here alone."

I didn't know how to respond to that, I was with them just two days ago and they all seemed nice enough. I paused for a moment, "I…I heard about their attacks but I thought it was in their storyline."

Stephanie shook her head, "No, that was all them."

I sat there trying to let this new piece of information sink in while she started speaking again, "Just be careful, Maria."

I nodded before walking out of her office. I felt nervous as I made my way through the hallway back to my car. I couldn't believe that those sweet guys I had been talking to were so _vicious_. But I should know by know that people can fool you. I shook my head before getting into my car and driving off to my hotel.

* * *

I sat on a small crate backstage as I prepared myself for my match which was taking place in a few minutes. I put on my headphones and pressed play on my iPod. I closed my eyes and got lost in the music as it began to play. I always got nervous before a match but tonight felt different – it felt eerie to be sitting here by myself after what Stephanie had told me earlier today. I took a deep breath and tried to clear my head, I had a match coming up shortly and I needed to prepare for that.

* * *

I fell to the ground as Michelle pushed me down and started to pound my head against the mat repeatedly. I could hear Layla cheering Michelle on while standing in her corner of the ring. I was in a handicap match against LayCool – as sweet as they were off-screen, they were just as ferocious on-screen. The kick to the skull that I received earlier from Michelle had been the beginning of the end for me in this match. I wasn't able to recover myself properly from that. And for some reason, today I felt worn out and tired as all of this was taking place. I could feel the energy draining my body every time my head hit against the mat. I looked up wearily as Michelle got up and tagged Layla into the match, who then dropped to her knees and covered me for the pin.

"One, two-" the referee stopped counting as Layla got off of me and stared confusedly towards the ramp and then at Michelle. They both exchanged worried looks before hurrying out of the ring and heading towards the announce table. I sat up the best I could and looked wearily towards the ramp. To my horror, seven people – seven _men_ – were slowly walking down the ramp and towards the ring. It was the Nexus.

Wade Barrett, the leader of the Nexus, walked in an intimidating manner and had an air of confidence around him. Heath Slater, David Otunga, Skip Sheffield, Husky Harris, Michael McGillicutty, and Justin Gabriel followed after him; they looked vicious, ruthless, and _dangerous_.

I tried to get up – and failed – as they surrounded the ring. Their cold stares ran a chill down my spine. I ran my fingers through my hair helplessly as they all got up onto the ring simultaneously. I looked towards the ramp, hoping to see someone come to the rescue but I was losing hope with each passing second. They all exchanged quick glances to each other. Wade gave them a nod and they all entered the ring as I still lay there, more defenseless than ever. I had a feeling that this wouldn't end well for me. My eyes began to well up as they began to corner me.

I started screaming as Wade grabbed my arm and dragged me towards the center of the ring. He lifted me up and set me up for the Wasteland. I tried to fight out of his grip by hitting and punching him but it was useless. I closed my eyes as my body crashed onto the ring. I felt piercing pain run through my spine and my vision was getting blurry. The last thing I saw was Wade grinning down at me before someone ran in and tackled him. Then, everything blacked out as the pain began to get dull.

* * *

My eyes fluttered open slowly to see some paramedics shuffle on around me. As soon as one of the guys saw I was awake, he quickly shined a bright flashlight in my eye and held my eye-lid up. Then, he did the same thing for my other eye.

I groaned; the light was hurting my eyes. I sat up enough to get a look at my surroundings. I was in the medical room backstage. I didn't know what was happening, I just knew my head was throbbing and my entire body was aching and felt sore. I cleared my throat before speaking, "Um, what's going on?"

"Here, have some water," a nurse said as she handed me a small, plastic cup of cold water. I smiled politely and took the cup. After drinking a few sips of water, I looked down, trying hard to remember what had happened. I looked up as one of the paramedics came up to me.

"Well, everything looks fine. You just blacked out for a while, but that's okay. Just get some rest tonight and you should be back to normal by tomorrow," the middle-aged man said and then gave me a reassuring smile.

I smiled, "Thank you…I-I'm having a little difficulty remembering what all took place."

"I'm sure it'll all come back to you in a few minutes, it takes some time for your mind and body to recover."

"Alright," I nodded.

* * *

"_I cannot believe what I am seeing, Cole. Wade Barrett, the leader of the Nexus, has just executed the Wasteland on Maria!" _

"_This is too far, even for the Nexus. I mean, Maria doesn't deserve this."_

"_Do any of their victims deserve their beatings?" King asked, rhetorically. _

"_This is…This is horrible, absolutely horrible," Cole shook his head._

"_What's this?" King asked, surprised._

"_Ladies and gentlemen, Randy Orton is running down the ramp and is headed straight for the Nexus!" _

Randy came in and tackled Wade to the ground but in a matter of moments, the rest of the Nexus pulled Randy off and started beating on him. They were wearing him down quickly – after all, he doesn't stand a chance going seven on one with them. Soon, the rest of Legacy came rushing down the ramp to Randy's aid which evened out the odds of the brawl – at least for a few moments. In a matter of minutes, Nexus had come out on top. The entire Legacy was sprawled across the ring looking terribly beaten.

"_This was an absolutely inhuman attack by the Nexus, King." _

"_I…I have no words for what we've just witnessed," King said before they cut to commercials. _

Sighing, I rest my head against the headboard of the bed. I felt sore all over and to top it off, I couldn't help feeling guilty for being the reason Randy, Cody, and Ted got hurt. They didn't have to come out there – I knew that as well as they did – but they _did_ anyway and they knew what would happen to them. The thing that I still couldn't get over was how ruthless the Nexus was. I thought I was a friend of theirs but they obviously didn't feel the same way. After a few minutes of thinking of possible explanations for the motive behind the Nexus' attack on me, my eyelids began to get heavy. I decided to get some rest for the night rather than stress myself out with all these thoughts. After a few mere moments though, I began to think about something else – or rather _someone_else. That someone else was Justin Gabriel. In all of tonight's events, I think he hurt me the most – emotionally, that is. I actually really liked him and then he just turned into this whole new person – vicious, ferocious, and cruel. I shook all thoughts of him out of my head before deciding I wanted to get some fresh air.

* * *

I wrapped the coat around myself tightly as the piercing air hit my face. I thought about going back inside because it was snowing pretty hard but decided against it because I wanted to clear my thoughts. I began walking down the street and my body was hurting more with every step I took. I finally stopped walking and leaned against the brick wall. I forgot how tender my back was until the pain came. I gasped painfully and stumbled forwards. My eyes began to burn with tears that were threatening to fall. I winced as another burst of pain ran up my back and finally, I collapsed onto the snow-covered ground. This was not one of my brighter ideas, I grimaced as I tried to get up but couldn't. Deciding to stay there and rest for a few minutes, I gently rested my back against the wall.

I began to shiver in a matter of moments and felt like it would be better if I went back inside – in fact, I _knew _it would be better if I went back inside. I tried to get up again but the unbearable pain kept me from doing so. It was snowing harder now and I tried many desperate attempts at standing up which didn't go so well. I finally reached into my pocket to clutch my cell phone only to find that I had left my cell phone in my hotel room. I whimpered as I pulled myself up to my feet.

As I walked inside the hotel, I happened to catch a glimpse of the Nexus – or a few members, actually – enjoying themselves at the hotel bar. I knew the Nexus had almost everyone backstage intimidated because they were so dangerous. Yet, seeing all of them there – happy and carefree while I was in so much pain – stirred something inside me. I knew exactly what I wanted; to get even with the Nexus now.

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Firstly, I am so touched by all the reviews I've gotten from you all. :') I am going to try and update this fanfic regularly. :) hahaha, I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. :)


	12. Let's Clear The Air

Guess who finally updated! It's been a while, huh? Well I do apologize for the long wait. I hope this chapter makes up for it though. I've made a small adjustment and changed it from first person to third person. Thank you all for your encouraging reviews, they were much appreciated.

Also, special thanks to "Happy fan" because your review motivated me to give this chapter another look and see what I could come up with.

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There Is a Light in Your Eyes

As Maria walked around backstage, she couldn't help but notice all the looks of sympathy she was receiving. Everyone's acting like she had been brutally attacked, which wasn't true – not completely, anyway. If anything, they should all be checking on Randy, Cody, and Ted – they're the ones who got the worst of the assault. These were the thoughts that ran through her mind as she made her way down the hallways.

"Maria!" A voice called out from behind her and she turned around to see a familiar face.

"Maria, I am _so_ sorry! Michelle and I – we didn't know what to do. I thought the Nexus was just coming out to make an announcement or something, I didn't think they'd actually hurt you. I mean, we were so confused because we had to stay in character and –"

"Layla, it's okay. I know you, and I know that what happened out there wasn't in your hands," Maria smiled at the petite, British woman.

Layla smiled softly, "So are you feeling any better?"

"Not really," Maria confessed. When Layla gave her a slight frown, Maria explained, "It's just that I haven't really gotten any proper rest because of all the traveling."

Layla shook her head in a disapproving manner, "You need to get your rest."

"I know, I'll try to get some shuteye soon," Maria replied.

"You better. Well, I should get going. I still have to pack and I bet John that I'd be ready before him," Layla laughed before giving Maria a quick hug.

"Tell Cena I said hi!" Maria yelled as Layla walked towards the exit.

"Will do!" She grinned before disappearing out of the building.

* * *

Maria quickly knocked on the door before she could change her mind. She bit her lip as she waited for the door to open. Her thoughts drifted back to Randy, Cody, and Ted. She wondered how they were doing. They were beaten so much worse than she was, and she couldn't help but feel guilty for being the cause of that. She hadn't even _seen_ any of them since the attack – that is, until now.

The door opened to reveal a wounded Randy Orton. Maria knew they hadn't left on good terms the last time they talked but her eyes couldn't help but soften when she took in his injured state. He, on the other hand, just looked confused to find her standing there.

"Hey. I had some time before the next flight and I thought I'd come and check up on you… How are you?" She asked.

"Been better. What about you?" He asked and if Maria heard correctly, she could sense a hint of genuine concern laced in his voice.

"Same," she smiled softly.

"So what brings you here?" It was his turn to ask the questions.

"I told you, I wanted to check up on you," Maria answered.

"Yeah, and what else? There's obviously something else you came here for," Randy stated as a matter-of-factly.

"Wow, is it really hard for you to believe that someone might actually care about you?" Maria began to raise her voice because his attitude was beginning to irk her.

"Oh, I do apologize if I find it hard to believe that you actually care about how I am – especially considering the fact that we aren't exactly on good terms right now if I recall correctly," Randy hissed.

"Just because you were being a jerk the other night doesn't mean that I'm not thankful for what you did!" Maria retorted. She waited a moment before sighing, "Look, can we talk about this inside?"

Randy glared at her before moving out of the way to give her space to come inside his suite. Maria walked inside and took a moment to admire the gorgeous room before she turned around to face him.

"Have you told him?" He asked out of the blue.

It took a moment, but Maria quickly realized that he was talking about Ted. She had thought about telling Ted about what she had seen, but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She didn't want to be the one to break it to him – nor _should_ she be the one to tell him. Randy and Maryse need to man up and take responsibility for their actions.

"No," she said curtly. "He deserves to know, but _I _sure am not going to be the one to break it to him."

Randy sighed. "The thing with Maryse… It was just a one-time thing. She came to my room looking for Ted and one thing led to another. It doesn't matter anymore though."

"What do you mean _'one thing led to another'?_ She came to your room to see _Ted _and you two ended up sleeping together_," _Maria said with a disgusted expression.

"I know, but I've learned from my mistake. It won't happen again," he promised as Maria rolled her eyes. "So anyways, tell me, why did you really come here?"

Maria looked up at Randy and hesitated for a moment. He seemed to catch onto her hesitation. "Just tell me," he encouraged gently.

"I wanted to know if you'd help me."

"Help with what?" Randy asked.

"I want to get even with the Nexus," Maria said with a wicked glint in her eyes.

* * *

"Maria, your plan is downright crazy," Randy said disapprovingly.

"Randy, _please_," she begged, "You saw what they did to me." She took a deep breath and continued, "I just want them to know that they can't get away with what they did." Her voice broke towards the end and Randy's head snapped up to look at her from where he was sitting in the room. Maria quickly looked away to hide the tears that had pooled in her eyes and threatened to fall. She needed to be strong right now.

Randy sighed and rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, "Maria, I know where you're coming from, but can't let you go through with this."

Maria gaped at him. "So you're really not going to help me?" She asked incredulously. When he said nothing, she pursed her lips in a straight line. "Fine," she said tersely as she stormed towards the door.

As soon as she opened the door, it was pushed closed. She turned around and saw Randy standing behind her with his arm pushing against the door. Maria realized how little space was left between them. She was about to turn around when he placed his other hand on the door too, effectively trapping her there between his arms. She slowly looked up at him, only to find his eyes already piercing into hers. He leaned down towards her. His breath fanned across her face and she tried to ignore how rapidly her heart was beating. She couldn't possibly feel something for Randy Orton, could she? Nope. No way. Not at all.

"I don't want you to get hurt," he whispered huskily as he leaned in closer to her.

Maria panicked and reached for the doorknob again. She quickly pulled the door open and lightly pushed Randy away from her in the process. "I have to go," she murmured as she hurried out of the room. Randy let out a defeated sigh as he watched her get further away from his room. He shook his head as he mentally cursed himself. Well, he just made things a lot more complicated.

* * *

Okay, so I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. I've lost a lot of interest in this couple but I am not abandoning the story. I'll just try to update this semi-regularly if I have the motivation. Well anyways, Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Have fun, be safe, and eat lots of food.


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